Can A Villain Be Redeemed?
by ImagineATale
Summary: Shelved. I was here years ago as BatBImagination. Returning with what was going to be a one shot, but decided to be a full story instead. What if Chip, instead of freeing Belle and Maurice from the cellar, hides in the mob and tells Beast what he saw? What if Beast met Gaston knowing something of his plot? Can the villain be redeemed, or will he be unable to let go of his ego?
1. Teacup On A Mission

Chip wasted no time. His master was in grave danger, and the big mean man...Gaston was what everyone called him, threw Belle and her father in the cellar so they couldn't warn 'the creature'. But the teacup was not locked up. And he knew how to stow away, having done so a few hours previous. What better way to help than to travel with the very people who meant such harm. After all, they were headed straight to the castle, exactly where Chip needed to go. He snuck into a bag carried by one of the men.

Chip was just a boy, and it was scary for him to be riding in the middle of a mob of angry men singing all those awful things about the Master, and about how they were going to kill him. He heard the voice of the big mean man Gaston say that they would 'lay siege to the castle and bring back his head'! It was a long ride for the little teacup and it felt like it would never end. But finally they stopped, chopped down a tree, then they travelled a bit further until Chip heard the castle gates open.

He chose this moment to get out of his hiding spot and hop toward the castle, making sure not to be seen. He knew of a small hole in the castle wall that you might not know existed unless you were a sentient little teacup with a penchant for exploring. Once inside, Chip made his way to the West Wing as fast as his hopping base could carry him up the staircase. His mother was in the door, asking for instruction. Chip didn't like what he heard next.

"It doesn't matter now. Just let them come."

"No!" Chip cried, causing his mother to spin around. "Master I need to tell you some-"

"Now Chip," Mrs. Potts said sternly. "I already told him they were coming." She gave him a nudge with her spout. "We must leave the Master alone as he wishes."

"But Mama," Chip said. "I gotta tell him something you don't know!"

"Nonsense Chip," the teapot chastised with another nudge away from the door to their master's room. "Off we go now."

"But Belle and her...oof...father," Chip protested as he received more nudges from his mother's spout. "They're in...oof...trouble!"

Suddenly, the teapot and teacup heard a familiar growly voice behind them. Despite its gruffness, they had stopped fearing the voice's owner some time ago.

"Wait!"

They spun around to see the Beast now looking at them. They hopped back into the room.

"What do you mean they're in trouble?" he asked, concern written all over his features.

Chip looked slightly sheepish at this point, knowing he was about to admit to something his mother wouldn't be pleased with.

"Well, when Cogsworth said Belle was going away, I went and hid in her bag so I could try to get her to come back. So I saw things get really bad."

"You stowed in her bag?" Mrs. Potts asked sternly.

"Handle that later, Mrs. Potts," the Beast said, more harshly than he meant. He knelt down and held out a paw, which Chip hopped into. He spoke more gently this time. "What happened to them Chip?"

"After Belle got her father into bed and he woke up, I came out of her bag and asked if she didn't like us anymore. She said of course she did and started to explain but someone knocked at the door. Everyone was outside and were going to lock her papa in the asylum because he was raving like a lunatic about a beast...you Master. he came out and they asked how big you were. They laughed at his answer and started hauling him off. Then the big mean man...Belle called him Gaston...he said he could stop Belle's father being taken if Belle would marry him. She said no, and she could prove her father wasn't crazy. She got the mirror and showed you to them. She tried to keep everyone calm, but the big mean guy got them all excited saying you'd eat the village children. That the village isn't safe until you're dead. Belle tried to stop them, but the big mean guy threw her and her father in their cellar and locked them in. I hid in a bag in the crowd so I could come warn you Master."

"This big mean man Gaston you speak of," Mrs. Potts said. "Is he the one with the mirror? At the front of the crowd?"

"Yes," Chip said. "He took it from her as he started getting everybody all riled up."

"Master?" Mrs. Potts asked. "What shall we do? Something besides 'just let them come'?"

"Yeah, definitely something besides that," the Beast said. He thought for a moment, trying to push his anger at what he was just told happened to Belle and her father aside so he could formulate a plan. "Try to keep everybody at bay," he said. "If this Gaston tries to sneak through, let him. I'll be waiting. But keep the others from getting too far in. If they flee that's great. I want a few of you to take the carriage to the village and free Belle and her father from the cellar. I'll keep Chip up here with me since hopefully no more than Gaston gets up here if you would like."

"Thank you sir," Mrs. Potts said. "I'll make sure your instructions are seen to. Chip, wherever the Master wants you, stay put. Do exactly as he says, and don't go getting bright ideas of doing things he hasn't said. I don't want you getting hurt."

And with that, Mrs. Potts left to go back downstairs. The Beast stood, Chip still in his paw, and walked to the window just in time to watch the mob enter the castle, having succeeded in ramming the door open. He then walked over to a high shelf and placed Chip down.

"You should be out of the way here," he said. "When this Gaston character finds me, I want you to keep quiet, all right?"

"Yes sir," Chip said. "What are you gonna do?"

"Hopefully gain the upper hand...er...paw so I can resolve the situation quickly and peacefully," the Beast said. "As much as I'd like to rip into him for what he did to Belle I'm not the violent type anymore. The less violence it takes to deal with him the better."


	2. Upper Paw

And so they waited. Finally the door to the West Wing opened. The Beast stepped out in front of the door, greeted by the sight of a man with black hair and...spare biceps...definitely spare biceps...aiming a crossbow at him. The Beast stood still, watching. He watched very closely to know just when Gaston would let loose the arrow, and stepped out of the line of fire at just the right second. The arrow flew through the air and glass shattered. The Beast looked in horror as his rose fell to the floor, the arrow sticking out of what remained of the flower head. But it didn't matter since he'd let go of his chance to break the spell anyway. Plus there was no time to dwell. Taking advantage of Gaston's moment of confusion at the Beast side stepping just in time, the Beast swiped hard with a paw, knocking the bow out of Gaston's hands. He grabbed the bow off the floor and snapped it in two, rendering it useless. He then grabbed Gaston by the shoulders and pushed him to the floor. Seeing the mirror tucked in the hunter's belt, he grabbed it and set it aside. Gaston reached into a pocket and pulled out his dagger. The Beast grabbed the wrist attached to the fist that grasped the knife. His free forepaw pushed down on Gaston's chest just enough to keep him firmly pinned to the floor. He straddled the legs of his foe and sat on them to keep Gaston from kicking, being careful not to crush the legs under his weight.

"Drop it," the Beast growled.

Gaston tried to break his wrist free of the massive paw, but the Beast held firm.

"I don't want to hurt you," the Beast said. Actually part of him did, but the gentle side to him was larger. "Don't make me. Just drop the knife."

Gaston was in quite an unfamiliar predicament. He'd hunted wild beasts. He knew how to bring them down. He had laid bears low before. He knew the likely moves a wild creature would make. But never had he seen one behave quite like this. Creatures did not simply wait and step aside just as he was releasing the arrow. Creatures did not then knock the bow from him and then snap it in half. And creatures certainly did not grab the wrist whose hand held a weapon, pin the hunter to the ground, and demand that said weapon be dropped. Creatures who pinned one to the ground wasted no time in going in for the kill. Yet this one had him pinned down but said he didn't want to hurt him? For once in his life, Gaston was unsure what to do. But he refused to let on.

"And suppose I don't," he said defiantly. "Then what?"

"I don't think either one of us wants to go down that road," the Beast said gruffly. "But if you don't drop that knife then we'll have to and you'll be finding out."

Gaston just struggled. The Beast allowed a bit more of his weight to sink down on his opponent. His paw tightened around Gaston's wrist, and he allowed the tips of his claws to make contact with Gaston's skin, enough to be uncomfortable but not penetrating the skin.

"Do you want to test me further?" the Beast asked. "I can hurt you. I have you in a vulnerable position. I can do you a lot of damage. I could even kill you if I wanted to. But I would rather resolve this without anybody getting hurt. But if I have to pick between me getting hurt or you getting hurt it's gonna be you."

"Weakling!" Gaston taunted. "You say you don't want to hurt me but you're just a coward. Or too 'kind and gentle' perhaps?"

The Beast growled, baring his teeth.

"Do I look like a coward?" he said harshly. "I faced your crossbow, risking not dodging the arrow in time. I then destroyed it and quickly wrestled you into your current predicament. And I am kind and gentle which is why I want this to end without anyone getting hurt. I suppose Belle told you that right? Yet you riled your town into thinking I was a danger? Am I now hearing you backtrack on that?"

"How do you know what Belle said?" Gaston asked, starting to think maybe he was in over his head but too stubborn to admit it.

"I know things," the Beast growled, not revealing Chip as his source. "I know Belle showed me in the mirror to prove her father's sanity when you tried to have him thrown into the asylum to blackmail her to marry you. I know you threw her and her father into the cellar so they couldn't warn me. I'm not happy with what you've done to her."

"I did nothing to her," Gaston said defiantly. You know nothing of what you speak!"

"Yes you did!" came an angry child voice. Chip hopped off the shelf and over to his master's side. "I saw you! I went home with Belle and saw the whole thing! I hid in the crowd so I could warn the Master because you locked Belle up! You're nothing but a big meanie!"

Great. Chip just had to stick his nose...er...handle...into the situation. The surprise caused the Beast to loosen his grip slightly on Gaston's wrist, but feeling his opponant trying to move caused him to tighten his grip once more.

"Chip!" the Beast barked. "What did your mother tell you about doing what you're told and not doing what you're not?"

"Oops," the little teacup said sheepishly. "Sorry Master."

Chip hopped out of the way and the Beast glared at Gaston.

"I'm still waiting for you to drop your knife," he said with a no-nonsense edge to his voice.

"Were you in love with her Beast?" Gaston unwisely taunted. "Did you honestly think she'd want you when she had someone like me?"

"She may not want me," the Beast said. As his anger grew, his grip tightened a bit more so his claws were closer to perforating Gaston's wrist. "That is her choice! I'm not going to blackmail her into it. want someone other than me but I know her well enough to know she wouldn't want someone who treats her as you do!"

"But she is the most beautiful girl in town!" Gaston said. "That makes her the best! And I deserve the best! And no one says no to Gaston! When that girl turned down my proposal when I had the whole town gathered in front of her house for our wedding, I knew I couldn't rest until I had her as my wife! I'll show her!"

The Beast could hardly believe his ears. This man was so sure of himself that he organized the wedding before proposing? He had such a big ego! And now he talked of Belle as if she was some object to claim. Some prize to win. Some prey to bring down. This made the Beast very, very angry. He barely realized his grip on Gaston's wrist was tightening to where the claws did start to penetrate the skin as he let a loud roar loose right in the face of the man pinned underneath him. He also pushed a bit harder on the chest with his other paw.

"Please," Gaston started begging. "Press harder and you won't let me breathe. Let me go! I'll do anything!"

"DROP! THAT! KNIFE!" the Beast yelled,

Gaston finally complied. Just then, Cogsworth, who nobody knew had entered the room, stepped forward and grabbed the dagger and threw it behind a large dresser so the intruder could not easily recover it should he get free. The Beast immediately let the wrist go, pulled Gaston to a sitting position, and wrapped his left arm around Gaston's torso, binding both the man's arms to it. With his free paw, he thoroughly searched the hunter, throwing arrows and another knife aside which Cogsworth, and Lumiere who also now appeared hid as well. Once Gaston was fully disarmed, the Beast positioned him so that he was sitting in front of the Beast, with the Beast's bear-like arms restraining Gaston's upper body to his chest. He sat like this as he considered his next move.

"Master," Cogsworth said. "The mob has fled a few minutes ago. Those we sent to the village should be getting there about now so Belle and her father should be free by the time the other villagers get home. Looks like you have things under control with this fellow, but is there anything we can do to help?"

"Just wait for me here," the Beast said. "I don't want to do this, but I'm going to have to put him in the dungeon. I can't let him go free until I know Belle and her father are safe. As distasteful as locking someone in the dungeon has become to me I see little choice. At least he'll get a taste of his own medicine, locking Belle and her father in their cellar."

As he carried the struggling Gaston to the tower, he considered the irony of what he had said. Just months ago he had locked Maurice in the tower dungeon. And when Belle took his place, well he didn't exactly lock her in the tower but surely would have had Lumiere not suggested otherwise. Who was he to give someone else a taste of their own medicine when he deserved a taste of it himself?

But he had changed. He now was repulsed that he had ever thought that locking an innocent person in the dungeon had even the remotest semblance of acceptability. Heck, it bothered him that he was fixing to toss Gaston in the clink, and Gaston was hardly innocent. Yet he knew he could not just let Gaston go without making sure he could not harm Belle or her father. So he shoved Gaston into a cell and locked him in. He looked at the punctures on Gaston's wrist.

"I didn't want it to go that far," he said. "I wish you'd just dropped the knife the first time. I will send someone to clean the wounds."

Without another word, he made sure the door was securely locked, turned around, and headed back to the West Wing. There he saw Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts and Chip staring at the fallen rose, all petals detached from the stem.

"The arrow hit the rose when I dodged," he said, sure his staff was wondering.

"Well I guess it's official," Cogsworth said. "Not that we didn't know it would be soon enough anyway. Too bad to see it happen this way."

"What matters now is Belle and her father," Beast said solemnly. He took the mirror he'd recovered from Gaston's person. "Show me Belle please."

After the initial green glow subsided, the scene before the Beast made him smile. Philippe was carrying Belle and Maurice as fast as he could through the forest. Alongside ran the sentient carriage, no doubt with some of the servants inside.

"She's coming back," he said, placing the mirror on the table that was once home to the rose. "She and her father are on the way. They've been released from the cellar by whoever you sent. At least now Gaston won't be able to hurt them anymore." He then remembered something. "Mrs. Potts, I was able to subdue him for the most part without injury, except there are some puncture wounds on his right wrist from my claws. I don't think they're deep, but would you see that the wounds are properly attended?"

"Right away sir," the teapot said, before hopping out of the room.

"How long will you hold him Master?" Lumiere asked.

"I don't know," the Beast said wearily. "Since Belle changed how I treat people the idea of keeping a prisoner, especially in the tower, is not sitting well with me. But what he did...and how he talked about Belle as if she were an object put here for his pleasure...I don't know if she or her father will be safe if he goes free."

"Could they both live here?" Lumiere asked. "He can then be sent home and Belle and her father would be safe at the castle."

"Of course they can stay," the Beast said without hesitation. "I hope they will, but it is their choice. I will not rob them of their freedom again."

"Even if they stay how safe are they?" Cogsworth asked. "He can lead the mob to storm the castle again."

"I doubt the other villagers will be too keen to come back here," Lumiere said. "I don't think an onslaught of angry household appliances was what they were expecting or something they'd be anxious to face again."

"And I don't think Gaston is going to want to come up against me again anytime soon," the Beast said slowly. "I think I made it clear I'm the wrong guy to get on the bad side of. But I'll need to learn as much as I can about him from Belle and her father. Something tells me he's the wrong guy to underestimate."


	3. The One I Love

"Perhaps we should go downstairs and wait for their arrival?" Cogsworth suggested.

"I suppose we should," the Beast said and led the way downstairs.

Once the Beast was in his chair by the fire, he suddenly realized how tired he was.

"That was more strenuous than I realized until now," he mused. "Not sure why I wasn't feeling tired while wrestling around but all of a sudden now I'm positively pooped."

"Adrenaline rush, Master," Lumiere said, looking up into the Beast's eyes. "Gave you the strength to do what you needed to do. Now that the crisis is over you don't have that rush so your body is catching up to the fact that it did more than it would under normal circumstances."

Just then, Mrs. Potts entered along with the coat rack.

"You were right Master," the teapot said. "The wounds on the man's wrist were not deep. He kept going on about how you tried to kill him but it seems you used incredible restraint, sir,"

"Tried to kill him huh?" the Beast said. "I kept telling him I wanted to resolve it without anyone getting hurt and I maintained that though it got hard. When he talked like Belle was little more than prey to conquer it was all I could do to keep from doing him some serious bodily harm. If I had wanted to kill him he would be dead now."

"I think he was playing fast and loose with the truth," the coat rack said. "As I was bandaging his wrist he kept going on about how you thought you could kill him and how he escaped with just a few punctures."

"I pointed out there were two problems with that," Mrs. Potts said. "First, I told him we know our Master, and if there's any way he can resolve an issue peacefully that's the route taken. Second, he was locked up in the dungeon, so he hardly escaped."

"That Gaston's ego is infuriating," the Beast growled. "I don't know him but for the few minutes I had the displeasure of dealing with him, I think I've got a pretty good grasp on the kind of person he is. That's why I don't know what I'm going to do with him. I hate that I ever thought the dungeon was appropriate for anyone but I can't let him go until I know he can't bother Belle or her father anymore."

Just then, the footstool barked and ran out into the foyer. The Beast got into the foyer just as Belle, Maurice, and a few assorted furnishings came in the front door.

"Beast!" Belle cried out, running to the Beast and throwing her arms around him.

"Belle!" he exclaimed, returning her embrace.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I'm so sorry Beast. Are you all right?"

"You don't have anything to be sorry for," Beast said. "I'm all right. Thanks to clever little Chip for stowing in your bag, then in the mob, he was able to tell me what was going on. Let's all go in by the fire."

Once everybody was situated in the parlor, Belle decided to get one thing out of the way first.

"Beast, I hope you don't mind I brought my father with me...?"

"Of course I don't mind," the Beast said. It was suddenly a bit awkward. Beast and Maurice didn't exactly have a pleasant first meeting.

Belle seemed to sense the need to break the ice.

"I would like for you to meet...properly," she said. "Beast, this is my father Maurice. Papa, I know your first impression of Beast wasn't a good one, but like I told you he is quite different. He's my dearest friend."

The Beast seemed startled but happy with Belle's description of him. He somewhat shyly held out a paw to the old man.

"I'm...sorry about before Monsieur," he said softly.

Maurice stood there looking at the Beast, now wearing a shirt and standing upright. He did seem much gentler and Maurice did trust his daughter's judgement. He slowly, with slight trepidation, reached his hand out and placed it into the massive paw extended to him.

"Belle always has been a very good judge of character," Maurice said. "She has spoken very highly of you sir. I trust her judgement, and am pleased to make your acquaintance."

Belle smiled, glad that that introduction went well given the circumstances of Maurice's first visit to the castle. Then she decided to move onto the other pressing issue of the night.

"We passed the villagers on the way here," she said. "They were pretty freaked out from what I gathered, Seems getting attacked by a bunch of living furniture wasn't in their plan. But Gaston was not among them. Have you seen him?"

"Oh yes," the Beast said. "We had a scuffle. He's a real piece of work!"

"That is putting it very kindly," Belle said dryly. "I'm so sorry. I tried to stop him. This is all my fault. Did he hurt you?"

"Since I knew from Chip what was going on I was able to prepare," the Beast said. "I'm not hurt. So he tried to blackmail you into marriage did he?"

"I couldn't believe it!" Belle exclaimed indignantly. "Papa was just recovering from being cold and sick in the woods and they came to take him to the asylum! Gaston said he could clear up the 'misunderstanding' if I agreed to marry him! I already turned down his proposal!"

"From what Chip said, then Gaston, I've gathered as much," the Beast said. "He talked about you like you were some prize to be won."

"So you won the fight? He's a skilled hunter. I was so worried about you!"

"He may be a skilled hunter of animals," the Beast said. "And I may be one in form, but I don't think he quite expected me to fight as a man might. His stunned response to me dodging his arrow after I just stood there waiting for him to fire gave me time to knock the bow from his hands and break it, and I had him pinned under me before he could do much. He drew his dagger but I held his wrist so he couldn't do anything with it and ordered him to drop it. He resisted, but I eventually got the point across."

"So he's gone now?" Belle asked. "On his way back to the village?"

"No," the Beast said. He then hung his head and placed it in his paws.

Belle rested a hand on his arm.

"Were you forced to kill him?" she asked. "Because if so I don't blame you. He meant to kill you. If you had to to defend yourself..."

"He's alive," the Beast said. "And hardly injured, save my claws going into his wrist a bit. A large part of me wanted to kill him when he said what he did about you, but I controlled myself."

"Then why are you so glum?" Belle asked.

The Beast looked at her. Then he looked at Maurice. Then back at Belle. Then his gaze fell back to his lap and he shook his head. His words were forced, barely above a whisper.

"I put him in the dungeon. I thought I was done locking people in the dungeon."

After a moment of silence, Belle spoke.

"You know the difference though right?" she asked gently, taking Beast's face in her hands and lifting his head to make eye contact. "Papa was an innocent man guilty of no more than losing his horse and seeking shelter from rain and wolves. Gaston came here with intent to murder you. I don't like the idea of anyone being in the dungeon but he did bring it upon himself."

"I don't know what I'm going to do with him," the Beast said with a sigh. "He seems capable of stooping quite low to get what he wants, and I don't want him hurting either of you again, and I don't know if we've seen the extent of what he's capable of. I don't want to hold him prisoner in the tower, but I don't want him going free without being absolutely sure you and your father won't be bothered by him ever again." He thought for a moment. "You're both welcome to stay here of course, but if you'd rather go home I will no longer stand in the way of that. But if you and Gaston live in the same village I can't make sure he can't get to you. I can protect you if you're here but now that he knows how I fight he might come back more prepared."

"I can tell you he has a gun," Belle said. "You'll not be able to dodge that thing. He'll pull the trigger and you'll be dead in short order depending on where he hits you,"

"Well that's not something I'd want to go up against," the Beast said, running a paw through his mane. "I can't keep him away from you if I'm dead. But that assumes you'd even want to live here. I released you from your agreement. I...I hope you both would stay, Gaston notwithstanding. But...I...I don't want you to stay if...if you don't want to."

Belle could tell it was hard for Beast to speak of her possibly leaving. His words were forced, just like they were when he told her to go to her ailing father. She stroked his mane.

"Of course I want to stay," she said. "I hope my father will stay too. I'd be reluctant to stay if Papa leaves only because I know how iffy his health can be. I only left before because I had to get him home and warm or he'd surely die. I kind of wish I'd just brought him back here in the first place."

The Beast smiled, relieved at her words. They both turned to look at Maurice. The Beast was nervous. Maurice seemed open to the fact that the Beast changed, but would he want to live under the same roof of the one who had once been so cruel?

"Papa?" Belle asked, also a bit nervous.

"I first want to say that no matter where I reside Belle you should not feel compelled to stay with me," Maurice said. "I don't handle the cold well. That's why I took ill in the dungeon and why I took ill in the woods. If I were to go back to the village, I can see you'll be well taken care of here so I wouldn't go wandering in the woods to try to save you."

At this, the Beast's expressive blue eyes filled with guilt. It was his fault Maurice was sick, both times.

"So you mustn't feel obligated to give up what you want because of me," Maurice continued. "That said, if the Beast wouldn't mind me bringing all my tools and things here so I can continue being an inventor, I'd be glad to stay. Especially if nobody here would think I'm crazy for inventing things."

At this, the Beast's jaw dropped.

"Crazy?" he asked incredulously. "Crazy for inventing things? If you live here I want you to be comfortable so bring whatever you need for that to happen. And if you hear anyone so much as whisper about you being crazy I would like to know. I don't think anyone here will think you're crazy but if so I'll have a word with them."

"I think we'll both fit in here," Belle said. "I feel at home here. I never thought I would but honestly this has been much more my home than the village ever was. At the village...well I'm odd because I like to read and Papa's just a crazy old loon they say."

"And yet Gaston wanted to marry you?" the Beast asked.

"It's all about the looks for him," Belle said. "They say it's no wonder my name means beauty, my looks have got no parallel. Gaston sees himself as the male version of that and no one in town disagrees even slightly. They're so superficial. He figures he can squash my penchant for reading and shape me to fit nicely into the 'little wife' mold. I don't love him. I see what's on the inside of a person. And I don't like what I see on the inside of Gaston. You Beast are sweet and kind, even if you didn't show it at first. You're the one I love."

Belle was mildly surprised by her last sentence. Those words just rolled off her tongue without thinking, but she realized those words were a hundred percent true.

The Beast was more than mildly surprised at what he heard. He stared at her, mouth agape, not sure he heard what he thought he did. After a moment, he found his voice.

"Uh...run that by me again?" he asked. I...I'm not exactly sure if I heard you right."

"I think you did," Belle said, smiling. "I love you Beast."

"You do?" the Beast asked after a pause, still not quite able to wrap his head around what he heard.

"Yes, I do," Belle said.

"I...I love you Belle," the Beast said, finally grasping that Belle had in fact confessed her love. "I...I meant to tell you out on the balcony. Now that I know you love me I wish I had."

"Now's just as good a time as ever," Belle said. "But what do you mean by now that you know? Did you think I wouldn't love you?"

"I was afraid you wouldn't," the Beast admitted with a sigh.

"Would you have told me had I not talked about missing my father?"

"I think so," Beast said. "I planned to, and it helped that you said you were happy when I asked. I should have said something before you left...but then I just couldn't. But I'd be better for you now if I had and you returned the love then. I'm sorry Belle."

"What do you mean?" Belle asked.

"I suppose I can tell you now," the Beast said. "I couldn't before, but have you wondered why I'm a beast, and why my staff are as they are?"

"I have been curious," Belle admitted.

"I was a Prince," the Beast explained. "My parents had been dead for years, and I was still just a boy when...my life changed again. I was spoiled, selfish, and unkind. No one dared do anything except what I wanted. Servants who disobey their master risk unemployment after all. So one night in the dead of winter a haggard old woman came here offering a rose in return for shelter from the cold. I was repulsed by her appearance and told her to get lost. She warned me that beauty is found on the inside but I was having none of it and turned her away once more. Suddenly she transformed into something beautiful. Turns out she was an enchantress. She was testing me...testing my heart. And I failed. She saw no love. So she transformed us all into our current state. The rose would serve as an hourglass. If I could learn to love another and have her love returned by the time the last petal fell from the rose we'd all be human again. I knew the last petal would fall tonight, but there might have been a chance but the arrow hit it when I dodged. I had already resigned to remaining a Beast forever though when I let you go."

"That's why you turned to the rose when we learned of Papa's plight," Belle mused. "And why you seemed to struggle when telling me to go...you knew what you were giving up for yourself."

"Yes," the Beast said. "Then the realization of what it meant for everyone else hit when Cogsworth came in and I had to tell him."

"I'm so sorry Beast," Belle said. "I gathered that there was some kind of enchantment on the castle but I didn't realize I could..."

"Belle please," Beast said taking her hand in his paw. "You had no way of knowing. Nobody told you because you couldn't love me out of obligation. I just wish I'd told you how I felt before you left. Then the spell could be broken and you wouldn't be stuck loving a beast."

"I hardly feel stuck," Belle said. "You're a gentleman on the inside and that's who I love. Besides, your appearance has grown on me. You do clean up quite well."

"I appreciate you don't mind how I look Belle," Beast said with a slight smile. "But...i love you...you love me...and we can't take it farther than that because interspecies marriage...not to mention what...you know...married couples do...would be highly improper."

"Absolutely right," Cogsworth butted in. "Not to mention highly illegal. Oh what are you two going to do now that the spell is permanent?"

"Well," Belle said. "First, why don't we all get a good night's sleep and worry about that tomorrow? We also have to figure out what we shall do about Gaston. But it's nearly three in the morning isn't it Cogsworth?"

Cogsworth nodded. The Beast stood.

"Monsieur Maurice, why don't I show you to your room?" he said. "I'll put you near the East Wing where Belle stays. There's a bedroom...first room in a corridor just off the east staircase. Belle's room is directly above I believe. There'll be just a staircase between you."


End file.
